s, I am sorry to tell you that my
aunt, Miss O'Flynn--Miss Katie O'Flynn--who I hoped would have joined
our numbers to-night, and would have been a perfect rock of strength for
us all, has been obliged to suddenly go back to Ireland, owing to an
accident that has happened to her dearest friend."

"Dear, dear, how sad!" said one or two.

"So we are without her, girls," continued Kathleen. "And now I want to
know if you are prepared to stand by me through thick and thin?"

"That we are!" was shouted in one vivid, clear girlish note.

"I am glad to hear it. And if you will stand by me, you may be quite
sure that I will stand by you. It is whispered in the school that we are
found out, and the school, bless it! is angry. It doesn't want us, you
foundationers and me, to have our fun--our little bit of innocent fun."

"Very mean of it!" said one or two, while the others groaned.

"It wants to crush us," continued Kathleen. "We mean the school no harm,
and why shouldn't it let us alone? All we want is our fun, a little bit
of liberty, and to show those companions who look down upon us that we
are as good as they, and that we will fight for each other, and have our
own way, and meet when we please, and do as we like out of school hours.
It is a sort of Manifesto of Independence, that is what it is, girls,
and I want to know if you will stick to it."

All the hands were raised up at this juncture, and all the voices said:

"Yes, yes, yes."

"That's splendid," said Kathleen. "I didn't know I had such an
enthusiastic following. Well girls, we'll have to run a certain risk. We
will have to conceal all we can about this society; we'll have to be
true to each other, whatever happens; and we'll meet wherever we like,
girls. Let the head-mistress and the governors say what they please."

"Hurrah for Kathleen O'Hara! Hurrah for the Wild Irish Girls for ever!"
they shouted.

"That's about it," said Kathleen. "I called you all to-night to tell you
that we are suspected, and we are called insurrectionists; but let them
call us what they like."

"Please," here put in the timid voice of Janey Ford, "are we likely to
be put in prison? For that would break mother's heart, and do none of us
any good."

"Oh, you little goose!" cried Kathleen, with her ringing laugh. "Not a
bit of it. The worst that could happen to us is to be expelled from the
school."

Now this worst, which was really a matter of little importance in the
eyes o